


Magic Comes Chasing

by Unformal_Sorrelle



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Crossover, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-20
Updated: 2016-10-06
Packaged: 2018-08-16 09:34:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,549
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8097070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Unformal_Sorrelle/pseuds/Unformal_Sorrelle
Summary: “Is there a reason why you brought a filthy bird into our office?”Mokuba smiled and alarms went off in Kaiba’s head. That was a dangerous smile. Apparently Mokuba had a plan. Maybe it’d at least be more entertaining than reading yet another office memo…“It brought me a letter, big brother.”“I wasn’t aware that they used owls as carrier pigeons over in this backward country.”“Just because they don’t have Duel Monster tournaments doesn’t mean they’re backward, Seto.”





	1. The Start of All This Nonsense

Kaiba held back a yawn as he looked through even more of his email. He skimmed through an update of what was happening back at his headquarters in Japan and frowned. It looked like they were all slacking without him. Why else wouldn’t there be more progress on the current VR project? He really did have to do everything himself.

Two months, he reminded himself, it was only two months he planned on living in London to help set up for gaining a foothold in the UK’s gaming market. Two months was nothing.

Sure, having to manage his company like this was annoying, and going to so many meetings with foreign investors was annoying, but he could survive. He could go two months without his lab and getting to really tinker with his projects. He didn’t really need to duel Yugi for a while. He was fine. Really.

He growled when he read over a typo of all things. It was on one of the new ads and if it had actually been printed then someone was getting fired. How lazy could people be?

Out of the corner of his eye, he detected movement. Seeing it was Mokuba-sized, Kaiba’s shoulders relaxed marginally. He didn’t turn his head until he had finished sending a particularly vicious response that he thought was threatening enough to make everyone in Domino shape up.

Indeed, it would cause several panic attacks and tears would be shed.

Kaiba blinked. His face fell slightly. There was an owl on his brothers shoulder. Now, he had two options on how to handle this. He could pretend it was perfectly normal- maybe it was a new hologram or something?- or he could snark at the owl until it went away.

“Is there a reason why you brought a filthy bird into our office?”

Mokuba smiled and alarms went off in Kaiba’s head. That was a dangerous smile. Apparently Mokuba had a plan. Maybe it’d at least be more entertaining than reading yet another office memo…

“It brought me a letter, big brother.”

“I wasn’t aware that they used owls as carrier pigeons over in this backward country.”

“Just because they don’t have Duel Monster tournaments doesn’t mean they’re backward, Seto.” Mokuba chided. He hid a chuckle unsuccessfully. One of these days, Kaiba was going to have to teach him a better poker face.

Anyways, Duel Monsters was an internationally recognized game. He knew insane people who grew up in tombs who played it. Yet, somehow Duel Monsters hadn’t made it big in Britain? How was a cult of Egyptian fairytales more cultured than an entire country? Britain was _so_ backward.

And now it looked like they sent their mail on birds. Was he supposed to find this charming?

“Who sent you the letter?” Kaiba closed his laptop. Who was he going to have to sue if Mokuba got bird flu?

“It was a school.” Mokuba chirped and shoved his hands in his pockets. The owl on his shoulder shifted its balance so it wouldn’t fall off. “I think I want to check it out.”

“A school.” Kaiba raised an eyebrow, especially at his brother’s new feathered friend. He didn’t trust a school that sent invitations by a bird. That was too close to all the weird stuff he’d just gone through with the madness that followed Yugi around. In fact, the owl brought a vague memory from a few years ago back to him. Some prank that happened when he was a kid? He couldn’t quite recall what it had been since it had been so ridiculous and such an obvious trick that he hadn’t thought of it in years. “I would have to look into its reputation. You do understand that we only have two months left in this country? And that you would have less time for your duties as Vice President?”

Kaiba had thought Mokuba liked his current tutor. Maybe it was the curriculum? Could it be boring his brother?

“I know.” Mokuba rolled his eyes. “But I think it would be a valuable opportunity.”

Was Mokuba trying to use business negotiation skills on him? Already with the persuasion techniques. This school must have really caught Mokuba’s attention.

“What’s so special about this owl school?” Kaiba forcibly schooled himself into a bored nonchalance, ready to hear the pitch. Then the owl gave him an evil look and screeched at him. Kaiba didn’t jump back. Yes, his chair rocketed backwards but that was just a coincidence. Kaiba glowered at the owl, his eyes smoldering in a rage that had made several employees turn tail and run like cowards. The owl ignored him and started stretching its neck.

“Well, big brother, I’d get to be around people my own age.” Mokuba held up a hand when Kaiba rolled his eyes, “Which if you remember those psychology books I showed you, that’s a good thing.”

Kaiba didn’t get it, but he let it stand. He’d read a lot about social psychology and a little bit of developmental psychology but it was hard to take seriously. Psychology wasn’t a hard science so much of a bunch of theories that couldn’t be tested without a bunch of human rights violations. Ok, Kaiba admitted that wasn’t all that fair, but it wasn’t as logical as tech. But Mokuba thought things like friends and peers were important so sometimes Kaiba had to indulge him.

“You could get that at any school. Please tell me that you don’t just want to go there because they have owls.” Kaiba rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“The school also offers subjects that I haven’t seen anywhere else.”

“Tell your tutor whatever you want to learn and they’ll teach you about it. That’s what we hired her to do.”

“I think that it would be good preparation for the future.”

“You still haven’t told me what makes this school so unique.”

Mokuba gave the owl a light scratch on the head. The bird looked utterly too pleased with itself. “Would you just trust me, Seto? Please? Promise you’ll consider it. Trust me.”

This was why negotiations with Mokuba were unfair. Well, it wasn’t like Kaiba had any right to hold Mokuba back if this school was something he really wanted to do. They were a team after all.

He glared at the owl for a moment and then looked back at his brother. Mokuba looked a strange mixture of hopeful and sly. Kaiba could already tell he was going to regret this.

“…Fine.”

Mokuba smiled brightly and the owl gave a strangely approving hoot. Kaiba couldn’t help a faint smile and ruffled his brothers hair. Mokuba gave a laughing protest and the stupid bird tried to bite him.

Kaiba opened his laptop back up again, “Have you seen the numbers from the VR project? We need to approach this by-”

Well, if Mokuba was going to be going to a school then he might as well enjoy his time now. There was a lot of work to be done after all, and Mokuba was the only non-idiot he knew in this whole Duel Monsters deprived country.

…

 _Dear Deputy Headmistress McGonagall,_  
_I am extremely interested in Hogwarts but I have a few questions about the school before I can agree to go. Would it be possible to schedule a meeting? I should be free on August 20th at 9 o’clock or August 21st between 10:00 and 2:00. I don’t know if owls are the only way you can communicate but if you can, please call the Kaiba Corp London office to make an appointment._  
_Sincerely,_  
_Mokuba Kaiba_  
…

“So you use wands? That’s awesome!” The prospective student beamed up at her. It was almost enough to make Minerva forgive him for being such a hassle to set up a meeting with.

Now, Minerva McGonagall was a capable woman, and she could manage wrangling the muggle business world if she really had too, but was there a reason why muggles had to make things so tedious? She had already been in a bad mood from trying to hold the school together until it started back up again and then Dumbledore just had to go an hire that Umbridge woman! Perhaps, it was more of the ministry’s fault than the headmaster’s, however that was still no excuse. Because Delores Umbridge was joining the staff, half of the teachers had started a betting pool over just how much of a nuisance she was going to be. The other half were frantically adjusting their syllabuses to either take out anything a ministry stooge would see as problematic, or adding content in protest. To teach at Hogwarts meant that one was granted a certain level of trust and respect, deserved or not. No one was looking forward to politics entering their classroom and all the judgmental chaos that came with them.

Looking in on this young transfer student should have been a welcome break from all of that. That’s one of the reasons she had not handed it off to Pomona or Charity.

Instead she’d found out that the boy had never actually been informed he had magic and was presumably a muggleborn. She had no idea why he hadn’t been enrolled at Mahoutokoro, but she didn’t know too much about the Japanese school in general apart from their Quidditch team. At least Mr. Kaiba would be around the same level as his age mates. She didn’t have to worry about placing him in more advanced courses like she would have had to do if he had been a transfer from Mahoutokoro. Since they started their wizarding education at seven, it always made the few transfers between the two schools tricky.

McGonagall wasn’t even sure if Hogwarts should take the boy. He’d shown up on the rosters since he was technically living here, but the boy had explained that he and his brother planned to be moving back to Japan in two months. The boy needed a magical education, that was true enough, but something had to be done.  
Mokuba Kaiba was a charming enough child. He was quick to smile and seemed incredibly accepting at learning about the magical world. His english was almost without an accent, though occasionally he would pause until he found the right words. He seemed very bright, and McGonagall was sure he’d be a pleasure to teach.

It was just everything else.

“How does that work anyways?” Mr. Kaiba halfway reached out, not quite daring to touch her wand. “Would any old stick work?”

“No. Each wand contains a core which allows the witch or wizard to channel their magic. Although having a wand isn’t necessary to do magic, wandless magic takes a lot more energy and practice.”

“A core? It isn’t like an ancient spirit or something, right?”

“Merlin, no.” McGonagall tried not to chuckle, “It’s commonly something like a unicorn hair or a dragon heartstring.”

Mr. Kaiba’s eyes bulged at the word ‘dragon’ and his grin widened. He was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet.

“Dragons exist? That’s so cool! Seto will flip.”

There was mention of the boy’s mysterious brother again. From what McGonagall gathered, he was Mr. Kaiba’s legal guardian. Perhaps the elder Mr. Kaiba would know why Mokuba wasn’t attending a magical school before this.

“May I speak to your brother? I think there are many things that need to be discussed before you complete your enrollment.”

“Yeeeeah…” Mr. Kaiba trailed off and looked at the floor. “I figured. That’s why I made sure to get you to come when he wasn’t in a meeting.” The boy went over to the windows and closed the blinds. On the way back, he accidentally knocked into the corner of his large wooden desk in the center of the room. It was hard to believe that this office belonged to a child given all of the professional furnishings. It was only tucked away in corners that McGonagall could see some toys and gaming sets that better fit the boy in front of her.

“Do you know if your brother is magical? I know that you said that you didn’t know about the magical world, but have you ever noticed anything that didn’t fit? Maybe he has a wand, or strange things have happened around him before?” McGonagall didn’t even know if she was hoping he was a muggle or a wizard at this point.

The young Mr. Kaiba laughed as he waved her through the door. He didn’t stop giggling until they were both in the hall. “Big brother has magic alright, but don’t tell him I told you.”

McGonagall nodded uncertainly but maintained her composure. She almost asked the boy to elaborate but instead she continued to follow him. They reached a rather important looking door labeled _Kaiba Seto- CEO_. The boy didn’t bother to knock and barged in, though he did remember to hold the door open for her.  
A young man sat at a large cherrywood desk with a beautiful view of London visible through the window behind him. A silver briefcase sat on the left corner of his desk with a large pile of papers to the right. A plate with a barely nibbled donut looked forgotten in front of his laptop. In contrast, a large mug of coffee was right where he could reach it without any problems.

The young man hadn’t looked up from his computer yet. McGonagall had to wonder his his clothing was normal in the muggle world. Surely fashion hadn’t changed that much?

“Seto!” The younger Kaiba ran right up to the side of his brother’s desk, “Remember that school you promised to consider letting me go to?”

“I had hoped that you’d forgotten that place. Didn’t I show you that article on bird flu?” The young man continued to type.

“Yes, Seto.” The boy sounded like he was humoring his brother. “But I have the Deputy Headmistress here to talk to you.”

“I’m busy.” He said flatly.

“No you’re not.” Mokuba Kaiba wasn’t letting him get out of it. He latched onto his brothers arm and tugged slightly. “Now come on! You promised.”

The elder Kaiba sighed and he finally looked up at her. McGonagall kept her face mostly expressionless but couldn’t help her lips twisting into slight disapproval at seeing that spectacle. She wasn’t one to be trifled with and he needed to know that.

To her surprise, even though he was young, his eyes were completely cold. There wasn’t even a hint of polite interest. He was guarded and she could tell with how he shifted his shoulders that he was incredibly suspicious of her. She felt like he was analyzing her, looking for any weaknesses. If she hadn’t taught decades of Slytherins then she might have been caught off guard. He had a similar dispassion, a cool arrogance.

It made her wonder how his little brother had turned out so friendly.

“I am Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts, Professor Minerva McGonagall.” She held out a hand for him to shake. “I trust that you are Mr. Seto Kaiba?”  
He snubbed her attempted handshake and instead looked at his brother. “Hogwarts? Isn’t that-“ he said a few words in Japanese and looked puzzled when the younger responded an affirmative. “So, owls and hog warts… Have you decided to be a veterinarian without informing me, Mokuba?” He gave her another quick look before focusing back on his brother.

What a rude young man.

“It’s not a veterinarian school, big brother.”

“Really? Then I suppose that delivering messages with owls and naming institutions after swine aliments is just a quaint English custom.”

“Seto! You promised you’d consider it. Be nice.”

McGonagall felt the urge to take away house points or give a detention. Even if the elder Kaiba was tall, he still looked like he would be student aged. For all his posturing, in fact maybe it was because of this, he appeared to be a teenager. McGonagall knew just how to handle rude teenagers.

“Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a school of magic, Mr. Kaiba.” She cut in icily, “It is one the most prod-“

Kaiba was laughing. It wasn’t a laugh of amusement. It was ugly with disbelief and a pinch of hysteria. His eyes took on a slightly manic glean.

“You have to be joking.” He accused his brother.

“I have a plan.” The younger Kaiba hissed.

“Magic doesn’t exist.”

…

 

“Just trust me on this!” Mokuba clenched his fists, “Let me explain.”

“I knew the dweeb patrol would be a bad influence on you. Mokuba, all of that stuff was just a trick, just like this ' _school'_ is. There is no such thing as magic, it’s just cheap tricks.” Kaiba glowered at the strangely dressed woman who had obviously muddled up his brother’s brain with all this nonsense.

“I’m not asking you to believe in magic, I’m asking you to believe in me.”

Kaiba froze, his eyes widened fractionally. Mokuba was pulling our the big guns. He wasn’t sure how to respond so he decided to focus on the latest charlatan. Why did these people keep invading his life? Yugi wasn’t even here this time. Things should have been trick free.

“Magic is very real, Mr. Kaiba.” The stern-faced woman took a stick out of her robes. She glanced around the room before her eyes settled on the remains of a donut Mokuba had tried to get him to eat earlier. She waved the stick and the donut morphed into a brass doorknob. “How else would you explain that?”  
“It must be a hologram, some kind of an illusion.” Kaiba narrowed his eyes. She looked surprised with his lack of immediate belief. Ha. He’d seen more convincing effects done by that Egyptian lunatic. Pegasus had had more proof.

The woman pinched her lips together and gave her wand another wave. She said a few words and now the doorknob was floating in the air. “And now, Mr. Kaiba?”  
“It’s just a trick.” Kaiba told her. “I’m not interested in any of this insanity. I didn’t have a past life. Yugi is not a pharaoh. Magic is just a fairytale.” He looked back to Mokuba, “Why did you listen to her? You know better.”

Mokuba looked down. Kaiba wanted to call security to cart away this latest psycho with delusions and have a proper talk with his brother. He understood that being kidnapped as often as Mokuba had been in the last few months had been stressful, and that the tricks did point to something being real, not magic, but something. But even then, how often had he told his brother that magic didn’t exist?

The woman was growing agitated. Probably because Kaiba had caught her lie.

“Mr. Kaiba, your brother needs a magical education. He has a power that if he doesn’t learn to control it then it will become a danger.” McGonagall reminded him of Gozoboro with her posture. She was used to being obeyed and saw herself as a figure or respect. The emotion in her voice confused Kaiba for a second before he reminded himself that she was nothing but a charlatan and this was all an act.

“Well if Mokuba ever starts pulling rabbits out of hats, I’ll be sure you send you a message. Perhaps I could send it by bat?” Kaiba let all of his scorn flood his voice.

“Now, I’m sure you have other people to bother so why don’t you run along and leave my little brother alone?” He let and unsaid ‘or else’ linger in the air. Hopefully the woman had two braincells to rub together and would clue in. He wasn’t buying what she was selling.

“Mr. Kaiba,” McGonagall’s jutted out her jaw forward. “Would you take this seriously? I will not in good conscience allow any harm to come to your younger brother. It is in his best interest to attend Hogwarts and learn to control his magic. I do not know if you are aware, but untrained wizards often use their magic accidentally and they cannot control it properly. By refusing your brother an education, you put him and others around him at risk.”

The accusation was clear. This old hag with a stupid hat was saying he was a threat to his own brother.

No one got away with that.

Just as Kaiba was about to finally send for security, Mokuba stepped in-between the two with his arms outstretched. Ever the peacemaker.

“What if Seto could come too?” Mokuba asked, his voice slightly wheedling. He looked at McGonagall with his most convincing expression. It was enough to make the charlatan relax the grip that she had choking her stick. What, had she planned on trying another trick? She had appeared to be ready to wave the silly thing again. Now she looked as puzzled as Kaiba felt. “You said that Hogwarts takes seven years of students, normally ages eleven to seventeen. Seto could be in 6th year.” Mokuba nodded and then looked back to Kaiba, “Then you can make sure I’m alright.”

“6th year? Are you saying that your brother is sixteen? I thought Mr. Kaiba was your legal guardian.” McGonagall squinted down at Mokuba, looking thoughtful.

“I am.” Kaiba countered. He knew it was a barely legal situation but if he hadn’t been able to hold on to his brother, then what was the real use of controlling a multimillion dollar international corporation? No one was taking his brother from him. All those kidnappings aside. Well… nobody was going to keep him. He looked back at Mokuba, “Why would I go to a ‘magic’ school? I don’t have the time to be indulging lunatics like her.”

It wasn’t like he’d even get a duel out of it.

Mokuba shrugged, “I think we could learn some stuff that might come in handy later. Like, what about the next time you duel Yugi and another crazy thing happens? Don’t you want to be prepared?”

As much as Kaiba didn’t want to admit it, Mokuba was right that insanity always followed dueling Yugi. It was to be expected at this point. That didn’t mean Kaiba had any desire to actually learn more about the dork’s weirdness. It was probably a slippery slope. As soon as he started buying in on any of the destiny nonsense then he’d probably be the next on to develop a split personality. Kaiba did not have time to cater to another personality. Hallucinating every so often was annoying enough.

“I told those nerds not to corrupt you.” He crossed his arms. His coat rustled.

McGonagall muttered something that sounded like, “The worst sort of muggle.” Whatever a muggle was?

“But Seto,” Mokuba stepped closer. His grey eyes gained a spark of something. “Haven’t you ever heard that magic is just technology that science can’t explain yet? You admit that magic is tricks, but wouldn’t you like to learn how people do them. Think about it. Please?”

“Mokuba…” Kaiba couldn’t help but remember all of the things that _weren’t_ magic, _it didn’t matter what Yugi said_ , that had happened to them. He just wanted to leave it alone.

But Kaiba wasn’t a coward. He didn’t run away from anything.

“I bet that you can figure it all out before we have to go home.” Mokuba knew just what he was doing. He’d issued a challenge.

Kaiba found himself laughing, full of disbelief. No. He was not getting dragged into yet another ‘magical’ adventure. He had a company to run, deck strategies to consider, and new blue eyes white dragon merchandise to design, as one does.

And he had thought London was irritation before.

“Mr. Kaiba,” McGonagall addressed Mokuba, “In the eyes of the laws of the wizarding world, you do not have a magical guardian. This is the case of most muggleborn witches and wizards but except in special circumstances, the underaged witch or wizard’s muggle legal guardian is still viewed as having custody. However, in the magical world, when a witch or wizard such as yourself is admitted to Hogwarts, the headmaster is granted _in loco parentis_ and is allowed to act as a magical guardian for the student. This is for the students safety since muggles may not have the knowledge or resources to always care for the witch or wizard.” She paused for a brief moment and Kaiba cut in with all the force of a white lightening attack.

“What are you saying, you old hag? Was that a threat? Are you threatening to take my brother away from me?” Kaiba’s eyes glittered and he gave a dark laugh. “Do you know who I am? I would hunt you down and all of your freaky friends. I have faced far worse than some old woman and her tricks before. You can’t even imagine what I would do to you. I’m not afraid of your ‘magic,’” he spat.

McGonagall’s face hadn’t even reacted. Mokuba cringed.

“Mr. Kaiba,” She nodded again at Mokuba, “If you want to go to Hogwarts then your brother can’t stop you. Only a legal magical guardian of age can pull a student out of Hogwarts.”

“Uhhh…” Mokuba looked at Kaiba, his eyes asking some question that Kaiba couldn’t decipher. “Uh, Seto and I are a team.”

McGonagall pressed her lips together. She did not look happy. Was that worry in her eyes? Ha. How weak. Showing fear to him. This is why charlatans shouldn’t even attempt to take on someone so vastly superior to them.

“Now leave my presence before I have you arrested for attempted kidnapping.” Kaiba reached his hand out dramatically, fingers outstretched. From his perspective it looked like he could crush the woman’s stern face in his fist.

“But Seeetoooo!”

“…Mokuba, that was a _whine_.” Kaiba cringed. Mokuba rolled his eyes in what Kaiba could only assume was in an apologetic manner. “Please, never do that again.” Please.

“Seto, I do want to go to this school.”

Kaiba’s face went slack. He pointed at McGonagall’s face. “She threatened to abduct you!”

“Why won’t you trust me?” The whine was back. Kaiba shook his head, absolutely incredulous.

What was happening? What was going on? Surely, Mokuba couldn’t expect him to believe any of this?

Suddenly, Mokuba sighed and straightened his features. He stood straight and lost the childish slouch. Then he winked.

Mokuba had said that he had a plan… Kaiba growled. They would be having a conversation later. But… Kaiba did trust his brother. Mokuba was the one he trusted the most. Did that mean giving him the benefit of the doubt? Usually, he would with few questions, but this was magic.

Except it couldn’t be magic. Because magic didn’t exist.

“It’s not like I can stop you.” That was the closest thing he’d give his brother to a yes.

Mokuba took it for what it was and shot his fist in the air with a loud, “Yes!” He grinned so widely that Kaiba thought that he’d done the right thing. Well, 17% of Kaiba. The sappy part that should have no bearing on decisions. “Thank you, big brother!”

Kaiba grunted and turned away, determined not to look a McGonagall’s no doubt triumphant face.

He was 82.671% sure that he was going to regret this.

…

Kaiba should have been more worried about making an enemy out of Minerva McGonagall.

…

Dumbledore just didn’t understand. McGonagall understood he was busy running the Order, but that didn’t mean he had to neglect his duties as headmaster. Yes, Potter had just gotten in trouble with the ministry. Yes, Voldemort was back. However, Mokuba Kaiba was a bright young student who seemed to be trapped in an unhealthy situation. He needed their help.

Of course, Dumbledore had never taken students’ home lives as seriously as she did. If she had her way, Potter would never have to go back to those dreaded Dursleys. In her mind, the protective blood magic didn’t mean much if Potter wasn’t actually protected from those horrible muggles.

She wanted the best for her students not the best for the world.

Right now, that meant taking a promising wizard away from a brother who refused to see the world as it was.

“And what if elder Kaiba is, in fact a wizard like his brother claims?” Dumbledore peered over his half moon spectacles.

“He didn’t receive a letter.” McGonagall argued, “And sixteen is plenty old enough to notice accidental magic. I doubt that the boy has himself so controlled that he has never lashed out and done something regrettable.”

“And yet, the younger Kaiba is positive his brother has magic.” Dumbledore looked curious. McGonagall frowned. She truly didn’t appreciate his commentary sometimes. Save the whimsy for the opening feast.

“He is a boy who loves his brother. Mr. Kaiba doesn’t seem to have any other family.”

“Ah. Family is important, Minerva. Wouldn’t you agree?”

“That doesn’t mean that a young boy should give up his chance at a magical education for a brother who would never accept him.” McGonagall said lowly. “Albus, it is our duty to help this boy.”

“Be that as it may,” Dumbledore said calmly, “Is it not also our duty to help the elder Kaiba as well?”

“ _If_ he is a wizard.” McGonagall admitted, her teeth grating. “But Albus, you haven’t met the boy. He’s the worst kind of muggle and as prideful as any Slytherin. I can tell that he’s probably had a rough life, and I pity him for what ever has made him so cold, but I don’t think that he can be saved from himself. He wouldn’t accept what was right in front of him. I fear that breaking his beliefs would only hurt the child. That kind of inflexibility is never easy to recover from when it snaps. I think he could survive his brother going away. I don’t think he could admit he was wrong without grave consequences.”

“How long did you talk to the boy, Minerva?” He raised an eyebrow. Minerva kept her stare straight on, but her cheeks colored slightly.

Perhaps she was overthinking the situation, but after decades of teaching she could recognize patterns. Seto Kaiba was similar to too many of her young students who had had too much pressure put onto them at a young age. But, there was also something different about him… She had never seen even a muggle outright deny magic when they’d seen it with their own eyes. Muggles would make excuses, but eventually the truth would hit them. Sometimes that was dangerous, especially if the muggle had conflicting religious beliefs or preexisting trauma, but they’d still believe. Yet, showing Mr. Kaiba magic was like showing a brick wall. If that brick wall were to immediately denounce the magic as nothing but an illusion, that is.

There was also the issue that it seemed like the Kaiba brothers had come across magic before. Mokuba had no trouble with believing magic, but he had been able to translate it to language that his brother could accept. He didn’t seem in the least surprised at his brother’s denial.

“A few minutes.” McGonagall admitted, “However, they were memorable. I don’t think I’ve ever been kicked out of a muggle office building before.”

Dumbledore’s blue eyes twinkled. His benevolent smile was a smirk. McGonagall could just tell what he was thinking. She grimaced. Headmaster or no, that didn’t give him the right to mentally laugh at her.

He waved his wand and a stack of parchment flew to his desk. He lightly perused the parchment as it floated in the air. After he finished skimming the first page, it went to the back of the stack. “Minerva, I will consider your proposal. I do agree that Mokuba needs a magical education, however…” He trailed off. His finger pointed to a line of spidery writing on the parchment. His eye crinkles deepened in amusement. “I do believe we will include Seto in this arrangement as well.”

McGonagall stood up to look at exact what this nonsense Dumbledore had found was. It was the list of Hogwarts declinations. Under potential transfers, the name Seto Kaiba was there. The reason given was “previous declination of magical institution.”

“But, he didn’t know that witches and wizards existed!” McGonagall argued, “How could he have declined another institution?”

“It would have been over ten years ago, Minerva,” Dumbledore said solemnly. “I don’t know the circumstances but perhaps his parents wanted to keep his magic from him? Or perhaps something more troubling occurred?” He gave a sad shake of his head. “With what you’ve told me of his aversion to magic, it would not surprise me.”

“I still hold that this is a mistake.”

“That may be,” Dumbledore sighed, “However I feel any other course of action would be remiss of us.”


	2. The Suspicious Pub That Everyone Avoids

  
Mokuba made nice with the teacher, allowing Kaiba to ignore her existence. He walked through London, his hands shoved into his pockets and his coat billowing out impressively. Kaiba’s scowl scared a few small children along the way.

Kaiba couldn’t help but feel even more suspicious at the fact that the entrance to the “magical world” was supposed to be in a pub. If all these theatrics turned out to be nothing but set up for a drug trip then Kaiba didn’t care what Mokuba’s plan was. They would leave immediately and he’d call the police on these maniacs.

He understood the value of playing along with lunatics. There had been a reason why he’d put up with all of Noah’s shenanigans as long as he did. As long as he stuck to the rules, then his opponent would be equally bound or they’d forfeit all rights to a victory. That wasn’t to say Kaiba wouldn’t go rogue if it suited him, but he’d make it the winning strike. He’d make sure that it finished the game. He’d make sure he obliterated his opponent.

Yet this was Mokuba’s game. His brother had made that clear. Kaiba was supposed to go along with what his brother wanted. He wasn’t really sure if he could really keep his distance but he was trying. For now, he’d just have to stack his deck with advantages and be ready to back his brother up if things went too far.

McGonagall pointed a finger to a place across the street. “The Leaky Caldron, gentlemen.” Her lips thinned when she looked at Kaiba. “Now come on, let us not waste any more time.”

Kaiba rolled his eyes and looked away deliberately. The Leaky Caldron, indeed. What a dump. It showed that hardly anyone even glanced at the place. People went out of their way to avoid it without even giving it a look. It was like everyone pretended the pub didn’t exist.

Suddenly, he gained a new respect for Londoners.

McGonagall walked on and Mokuba followed her after a slight hesitation when Kaiba didn’t immediately follow. Kaiba’s eyes roved the street, looking for anything amiss. There weren’t any suspicious vans, or people hanging around with obvious weapons. Of course, he couldn’t tell what was inside the pub so it could still be an ambush, but at least his escape looked clear if they did have to run.

He turned his head back to where Mokuba and McGonagall had gone on ahead. His blue eyes widened. He clenched his fist. What was he doing here?

Kaiba knew that white haired dork anywhere.

He was even wearing his normal striped shirt. Did he own anything else? Then again, given that Kaiba’s rival seemed only to wear his school uniform, this dweeb could be worse.

Kaiba thought about pretending he hadn’t seen him. It’d be so easy. Even Mokuba had missed him. Then Kaiba could deal with this latest ‘magical’ stuff in peace.  
Actually, _no_! After what he had pulled in Battle City, the dork deserved to be pulled into this!

“Bakura.” Kaiba’s voice carried even amongst the crowd. The boy’s head swiveled and he had a look of utter bewilderment. “Why are you here?”  
Bakura gave a nervous smile and awkwardly walked closer. A large man almost knocked him over but he dodged just in time. Kaiba didn’t let himself breathe a sigh of relief that it seemed that this was Bakura’s nicer and not absolutely psychotic persona. He still didn’t understand how his Battle City tournament had brought so many duelists with dissociative identity disorder together.

“Hello, Kaiba!” Bakura waved. There was more than a little suspicion in his eyes. “I didn’t expect to see you here. I just flew up to see my dad. He’s back from an expedition and-“

“I don’t really care.” Kaiba cut him off. Bakura narrowed his eyes slightly but didn’t argue. Good, perhaps he wasn’t as bad as the rest of Yugi’s little friends.

“However, I require your presence for the afternoon.”

“What?” Bakura protested, bringing up his hands to the universal stop motion. “I really don’t understand, erm-“

“Listen, dork. After what you pulled at Battle City, you owe me.” Kaiba took a step forward. Bakura shrunk back. “This is right up your alley. Right now, there are freaks trying to get my brother to go to a magic school. It’s utter nonsense, but Mokuba wants to check it out.”

“Magic school?” Bakura’s eyebrows raised and he looked more interested than frightened now. “I still don’t understand why you think I’d be any help.”

“I don’t want your help,” Kaiba spat. He ignored Bakura rolling his brown eyes. “But you have done these kinds of cheap tricks before.” He growled, “At least you had the decency to keep it to theatrics during duels.”

Bakura seemed to search for an exit. Then he sighed and shrugged. “Ok, I don’t mind helping out my friends when they need it.”

“We’re not friends.” Kaiba hissed.

“Friend of a friend then.” Bakura managed.

Kaiba scowled but let it slide. That’s what he got for enlisting a delusional fool.

With a growl, Kaiba turned on his heel and strode into the pub. Bakura followed cautiously, taking unsure steps. If he had been any slower then Kaiba would have yanked him forward.

Well… The customers of the Leaky Caldron sure knew how to put on a show. Kaiba couldn’t help chuckling at their ridiculous outfits. Pointed hat? Robes? The mutt had better fashion sense. These people were just asking to be mocked.

“Uh, Kaiba? What exactly is this place?” Bakura asked quietly.

“Lame.”

“You said something about a magical school? Are these people supposed to be magicians?” Bakura’s eyes went wide when a man shook his wooden stick and a muffin went flying from across the room. The muffins owner, a young woman in a red hat gave a huff and pulled her own stick out. The muffin split in half, each piece flying in an opposite direction. “Is that magic?”

Kaiba scoffed, “It’s a cheap trick.”

“That’s basically what you always say about magic.” There was an edge of snark in Bakura’s voice. His lips twisted into what would usually be called a smirk but the expression was somehow still innocent.

“Whatever.” Kaiba had finally spotted Mokuba and McGonagall. Without a glance behind him, he rejoined the two.

McGonagall raised an eyebrow, “Mr. Kaiba, so glad you could finally join us.”

She didn’t sound glad at all. Kaiba didn’t dignify her with a response.

“Big brother!” Mokuba beamed at him, “Professor McGonagall was just telling me about some of the classes at Hogwarts. Hey, professor, would Care of Magical Creatures have any dragons?”

“No, it would not.” She shook her head firmly, “Dragons-“

“Bakura?” Mokuba interrupted. His mouth fell open in shock but then he gave a friendly wave. “Wow, it’s so cool to run into you here.”

McGonagall seemed irritated enough at being cut off. She seemed to direct every molecule of disapproval at Bakura. “Mr. Kaiba, who is your friend?”

Bakura gave a nervous chuckle and scratched the back of his head. Kaiba took a step forward and narrowed his eyes. “He is not my friend.”

“Heh, heh, well…” Bakura sent Kaiba a searching plea for help. Ha. He really should have known better. This was pathetic. “I’m Ryou Bakura. I suppose I’m friends with Kaiba’s fr- rival,” Bakura corrected at Kaiba’s glare, “We’re in the same class at Domino High.” He squirmed under McGonagall’s stern expression.

“Mr. Kaiba,” McGonagall shifted her frown, “Do you remember the statute of secrecy I told you about? The law that forbids witches and wizards from telling muggles that magic exists?”

“Magic doesn’t exist.” Kaiba argued. McGonagall did not look impressed.

“To be fair,” Bakura said after an uncomfortable moment of silence, “Kaiba has never claimed that magic was real. In fact, he’s always denied it. I don’t know how, really, with what he’s seen and all but that’s Kaiba for you.”

“If anything, you broke your own rule.” Kaiba smirked, “Not that it matters.”

“Mr. Kaiba, you can’t just bring a muggle into the Leaky Caldron.” McGonagall sighed. She suddenly looked very tired. “Now the ministry will have to get involved.”

“Uh, that’s not a good idea, professor.” Mokuba winced. He gestured to Bakura’s chest. “You still have your ring, don’t you?”

“I can’t get rid of it.” Bakura’s voice was very small. “I’ve been lucky that he’s left me alone this trip, but he could wake up at any time.” He unconsciously rubbed a scar on his arm.

“Give me a break,” Kaiba growled, “Contain your craziness this time. I don’t have time for another one of your psychotic episodes. Keep it together and I’ll buy you a therapist.”

McGonagall looked extremely lost. She wrinkled her nose and asked, “Please explain, Mr. Kaiba.”

Mokuba shuffled slightly and glanced at Bakura. Bakura shrugged awkwardly. Then Mokuba shrugged himself, “Well, Bakura already knows about magic. He has a cursed necklace thing.”

“You mean a split personality.” Kaiba rolled his eyes. “Mokuba, you really shouldn’t feed into his delusions.” Kaiba felt a little insulted when Mokuba didn’t immediately nod.

“A cursed item?” McGonagall’s expression had froze. It seemed like she didn’t know whether to take it seriously or not.

“I’d rather not talk about it, thanks.” Bakura backed away. He had an overly cheery smile on his face. It didn’t do a thing to mask the worry in his eyes.  
Mokuba took a half a step forward, “Anyways, I’m not sure Bakura’s a muggle.”

McGonagall skeptically turned her head back to him. She missed Bakura mouthing ‘muggle?’ to Kaiba. True to form, Kaiba ignored him. All humans were non-magical. The term was redundant and didn’t make any sense.

“Well, Bakura, did you notice the pub before Seto told you about it?” Mokuba asked. McGonagall’s eyes widened and watched Bakura’s face intently.

“Uhh, he never actually said anything about here. And the pub was right in front of me, so yeah I saw it. I was trying to figure out why it’d have such a strange name. The Leaky Caldron does stand out.”

Mokuba nodded triumphantly, “And didn’t you say that there were muggle repelling charms here, professor? So Bakura has to be a wizard, otherwise he wouldn’t have noticed the pub.”

“You have to admit that this is a little hard to believe.” McGonagall pursed her lips together. “What are that chances of your brother bumping into one of his schoolmates and it just so happens that Mr. Bakura is magical?”

“Seto tends to run into a lot of interesting people.” Mokuba smiled disarmingly. Kaiba snorted. That was his little brother’s rehearsed innocent kid smile. Kaiba himself had given him tips on that one.

Out of the corner of his eye, Kaiba noticed more flying muffins. These people had the strangest illusions. The original muffin thief now had donkey ears and the woman’s hat had shrunk down to something a doll would wear.

Kaiba retrieved his deck and started shuffling and the boring conversation continued. He didn’t pay too much attention to the nonsense. It didn’t concern him. He didn’t care if McGonagall called her little fairytale ministry. Her resistance to Kaiba’s attempt at bringing back up was telling. She wanted them alone. This was smelling more and more like a trap.

Mokuba better know what he was doing.

Eventually enough was enough.

“Look, lady,” Kaiba gritted his teeth, “I’m not letting this dweeb get out of this. Bakura is accompanying us or I’m going to stop being so accommodating.”

McGonagall did not give a snort of disbelief. Surely she understood that Kaiba was being uncommonly nice to all this madness. It wasn’t as if he’d crashed a satellite into that school of her’s… yet. Of course, he didn’t have the coordinates for it. But Kaiba thought he was cooperating exceptionally well.

“Mr. Kaiba, I-“

A muffin flew. It was in a direct path to hit Mokuba’s face. Kaiba didn’t let it get that far and managed to slice it in half by throwing a card.

There was a bubble of silence as everyone who had seen gaped at him.

“I’m not gonna waste anymore time.” Kaiba said clearly, stalking passed McGonagall. His coat flailed dramatically despite the lack of wind. He looked cool even though he had no idea where he actually needed to go. “Let’s move, Mokuba… and losers.”


End file.
